Page 37 of The Wrong Fiancée

The head of events had literally begged me to help—he was sick as a dog, and I was the only one with both the experience and the time to pull it off. Then Leilani hit me with her pleading puppy-dog eyes, and, of course, I relented.

My life sucked!

I mean, how many people had to help serve at the engagement party of the love of their life, huh? No one had this kind of bad luck. Just me. Pele had it in for me. The bitch!

It was a no-expense-spared affair that only the ultra-rich could pull off without breaking a sweat.

It would start with lunch—an extravagant buffet laid out under the shade of palm trees, the waves crashing gently just beyond the resort's private stretch of beach.

Uncle Sam had spared no detail, ensuring every guest felt likeroyalty. I saw the who's who of Hawaii there, and no doubt, the minute Ginny saw me, she'd be furious.

"How are things?" Dante Giordano came up to me, a colorful drink with an umbrella in hand.

"Things are good, Mr. Giordano."

"Thank you for stepping up to handle this."

"It's my pleasure, sir."

He was a handsome man—and, like Dean, he stood out in the crowd of the rich and snobbish. At these events, I’d noticed the stark contrast: the men came in all shapes and sizes, casually throwing on a pair of shorts and a loud Hawaiian shirt, while the women were tucked, nipped, and styled within an inch of their lives. Their outrageously expensive outfits from the latest beach collections were a spectacle in themselves. The most popular seemed to be bikinis paired with sarongs that probably cost more than I made in a week.

Everyone was given aleiwhen they came to the party, and while the men wore them, the women discarded them in favor of theirrealnecklaces and jewelry.

"If you have any issues, come straight to me," Dante instructed.

"I will, sir."

He looked me up and down insolently. I didn't like it, but he was a wealthy boss, and I needed my job.

"Is there anything else I can do for you, sir?"

He smiled then. "Oh, so much, but…for now, just make sure everything at this party is beyond reproach." He spoke with a slight Italian accent, which I was sure some women thought was sexy as hell. Not me. I didn't. This man scared the bejesus out of me.

"I will do my best, sir."

He looked around and spotted, as I had, Dean and Felicity.

He had his arm around her. She was in a bright yellow sundress that was molded to her body. She had curves in all the right places. Her hair was perfect. Her makeup wasen pointe.

I was in black shorts and a white T-shirt with the companylogo on it. Instead of elegant sandals, I had on cheap sneakers.Yep, there was no contest.

"Dean and Felicity are like family to me," he continued.

"Yes, sir."

"Do you know them?" he asked insouciantly.

I tamped my temper. He knew about Dean and me so this was him just baiting me…but for what? Fun? These rich people needed to find other ways of entertaining themselves.

"I have been at the resort for three years now and have had the occasion of meeting most of our regular guests," I prevaricated.

His lips curved. "That's quite a non-answer."

"When you ask a question that you already know the answer to, maybe it deserves such a reply, don't you agree?"

Shut the fuck up, Elika. You'll get your ass fired.

Instead of getting annoyed, Dante looked amused. "I can see why he fell so hard for you."

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